Thank you to everyone who took the time to participate in Gov 2.0 Hero Day. I hope you got as much inspiration and enthusiasm as I did, watching so many people get excited about acknowledging the work of others.
My Gov 2.0 Hero: Gabe Klein
I want to nominate Gabe Klein, our Director here at the District Department of Transportation (DDOT). I know, very self-serving, but Gabe is still very deserving of recognition as a Gov 2.0 Hero. He has made it a priority to make the agency more transparent and to improve communications with our customers, and he has pushed us to utilize every tool at our disposal to do that. We have a thriving Twitter feed, a completely redesigned and more user-friendly website, and a Facebook page that Gabe often updates himself after hours. He also hosts regular live online chats and last week launched the agency’s first ever official blog, www.ddotdish.com.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Wayne Moses Burke
Wayne Moses Burke ( Twitter · LinkedIn) is Executive Director of Open Forum Foundation, operator of projects such as Twitter citizen app GovLuv, Open Model for Citizen Engagement and CongressCamp.
My Gov 2.0 Hero: Phil Tate
Manor, Texas has received lots of recognition for the innovative technologies that have come out of it, but many people don’t know all the individuals that are responsible. My role as Assistant City Manager and CIO is to steer the development of emerging technologies in Manor, but the real hero is our City Manager, Phil Tate.
My Gov 2.0 Hero: Luke Fretwell
One of the first people that came to mind as a Gov 2.0 Hero doesn’t even work for the government. With this said, this individual has had a profound impact on government through his immense drive and passion to make the government a better place. Luke Fretwell is the creator of GovFresh, which has become a very important resource for agencies and citizens interested in how technology is reshaping government of all levels. Luke recognizes individuals making their mark in government as Gov 2.0 Heros, but I think it’s time that his efforts get recognized. Luke, thank you for being a real Gov 2.0 Hero, and inspiring me to press forward no matter how difficult the challenge may be.
My Gov 2.0 Hero: Lucas Cioffi
Lucas Cioffi is the CEO of Online Townhalls, Inc., and founder of the Open Government Directive Workshop Series. The OGD Workshop Series is an inter-agency collaborative event hosted by a different federal agency each month. These self-organizing workshops help the public sector’s OpenGov community coordinate from the bottom up and make the critical transition from good to great.
My Gov 2.0 Hero: Ted Hsieh
It’s easy for one to say “Hey, on this website, wouldn’t it be cool if X?” where X is any given outcome of random neuronal firing in the brain of someone that might call themselves a New Media Strategist.
It’s a whole other thing altogether to make X a reality, to turn that idea into a tangible product. At HHS, that’s where Ted Hsieh (sounds like Shay) comes in. You won’t find him on Twitter nor GovLoop nor many meet-ups, but Ted has been called a ninja and a Jedi Knight. That’s right: He’s a Ninjedi Knight. As the lead developer for the US Department of Health & Human services, he takes all the crazy ideas that push and challenge our technological infrastructure, talks them out, adds a little magic and pumps out technical solutions to meet the needs of HHS web communicators. And he does it quickly. Like really quickly. (That’s where the magic comes in.)
My Gov 2.0 Hero: Dr. Nicholas Gruen
I’d like to nominate Dr. Nicholas Gruen (@nicholasgruen) for the stunning work he carried out on our Gov 2.0 Taskforce Report (see also Government response).
Gov 2.0 Hero: Bryan Sivak
Gov 2.0 guide to Gov 2.0 Hero Day
Gov 2.0 Hero Day is held annually on June 15 to celebrate citizens inside and outside government who go above and beyond the call of duty and creatively leverage technology to build a more open, transparent and collaborative democracy. These dedicated citizens are commonly referred to as Gov 2.0 Heroes.
Gov 2.0 Hero Day: Feature your heroes on GovFresh
Gov 2.0 Hero Day is fast approaching, and we wanted to give everyone an opportunity to show the love here on GovFresh. On June 15, we’ll post your heroes to help you show your appreciation for the great work they’re doing. Here’s how to submit your Gov 2.0 Heroes to GovFresh.
Celebrate Gov 2.0 Hero Day June 15!
On a whim, right after GovFresh launched, I started the Gov 2.0 Hero feature to recognize citizens doing great work inside and outside of government. It’s been inspiring to watch, not only shining the spotlight on people who don’t get a lot of recognition or publicity about the work they’re doing, but also seeing the community cheer them on once they’re featured.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Mike Rupert
Mike Rupert, Communications Manager for the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) in Washington, DC. Mike also recently started localgovchat.com and Twitter chat #localgovchat to unite local government communications professionals to share ideas.
Gov 2.0 Hero: John Lisle
John Lisle, Public Information Officer for the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) in Washington, DC, shares his thoughts on leveraging social media and the value of using a little personality to connect with constituents.
NASA Nebula sends government to the cloud
GovFreshTV talked with NASA Nebula CIO Chris C. Kemp about Nebula’s role in cloud computing.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Kevin Curry
Kevin Curry is Chief Scientist and Co-founder of Bridgeborn. He recently helped organize CityCamp Chicago to help address open government and Gov 2.0 issues at the local level.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Dominic Campbell
Dominic Campbell, founder of FutureGov and TweetyHall, shares his thoughts on Gov 2.0., (is that what they call it?), in the UK.
What was your path to Gov 2.0?
I came to government straight out of university (I’d actually wanted to work in local government since I was 17, if can you believe it) where I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to work my way around a local city council and poke, prod and challenge existing practice.
During this time, I was exposed to a wide range of public services and bodies and became very aware of the gap between image and reality surrounding people working in government. The vast majority are hard working, committed individuals who do it out of love and a real passion to change the world. But they are hindered all the way by bad management, poor leadership, a culture of risk aversion and blockers like awful IT systems that are made by robots for robots. I refused to believe things had to be this way.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Andrea Di Maio
Andrea Di Maio doesn’t mince words when discussing Gov 2.0 on his blog. Di Maio, Gartner Research VP Distinguished Analyst, shares his thoughts on Gov 2.0 globally, what will happen in 2010 and how to filter the signal from the noise.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Daniel Newman
MAPLight.org Executive Director Daniel Newman
shares what his organization is doing and what it means for politics and money.
What was your path to Gov 2.0?
As a volunteer in politics, trying to improve my community, I realized the tremendous influence of wealthy interests which slant laws to their benefit. I co-founded MAPLight.org to shine the light of transparency on the river of money that underlies our politics and to help citizens hold their politicians accountable.
Gov 2.0 Hero: Jen Pahlka
Jen Pahlka on her new role as founder of Code for America, the new role developers play in democracy and the importance of their involvement.
